Mechanical devices for automating or semi-automating the process of reloading of spent pistol or rifle shell casings are well known and have been in wide use for many years. Such mechanical reloading devices typically execute a well defined sequence of operations including; de-priming of the spent shell casing, re-priming of the casing, measurement and insertion of gunpowder within the re-primed shell casing, and mechanically crimping or sealing of the upper end of the shell casing once a bullet has been seated therein. In general, each of these processing steps are accomplished at separate process stations which are housed within the reloading machine.
Most commercially available reloading machines require at least some degree of user interaction or actuation. That is, these machines are generally not fully automated and consequently require operator assistance or participation at various stages of the reloading process. Typically such operator participation involves actuation of a mechanical arm or lever which, through a variety of mechanical linkages, serves to move the shell casing through the various processing stations, and which in some cases may also initiate or actuate the processing step.
However, while many of the reloading processes mentioned above are accommodated or automated, at least in part, by the internal mechanisms of the reloading machine, the feeding and seating of a bullet within the primed and powdered shell casing is generally not. Typically, the operator is required to manually insert the bullet within the shell casing, taking care to insure that bullet is properly oriented, prior to the shell reaching the automated crimping station. Manual placement of the bullet within the shell casing is time consuming and consequently lowers the overall effective reloading rate that an operator can achieve, and furthermore the manual placement of bullets within the casing is a significant source of error which can further slow the reloading process.
Therefor there is and continues to be a need for a mechanism that functions integrally with a pistol or rifle shell reloading machine which serves to automate the process of feeding and seating bullets within the associated shell casings.